Violin



(No Model.) 7 I J. D. LOPPENTIEN.

. VIOLIN. No. 360,317. Patented Mar. 29, 1887;-

WHEEEEET I $L/E77/D1 MW Y awsgmm/ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOIIANN D. LOPPENTIEN, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

VIOLIN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.360,317, dated March 29, 1887.

Application filed January 5, 1887. Serial No. 223,452. (No model.)

' T aZZ whom it'may concern.-

Beit known that I, J OHANN D. LOPPENTIEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Musical Instruments Played Upon with a Bow; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in musical instruments played upon with a bow; and it consists in the introduction of a bar into the body of the instrument, between its top 4 and bottom, one end of which bar is fastened to the block by which the neck of the instrument is held and the other to the knob that supports the string-holder, thereby forming a direct longitudinal connection between those points, and also a fulcrum for a cross-piece, upon one end of which stands the soundingpost, supporting the top of the instrument,

, while its other end is held by a screw, the

raising or lowering of which increases or diminishes the pressure of the soundingpost against the under side of the top of the instru ment, all for the purpose of enriching its tone by an increased vibration.

The accompanying drawings represent my invention.

Figure 1 is a plan of the instrument from which the top has been removed. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are cross-sections taken through the body of the instrument at different points.

In Fig. 1, A shows the interior of the instrument. The bar at is attached to the block b of the neck and to the block 0, to which the string-holder is fastened, thus extending over the whole length of the body of the instrument without coming in contact with its top or bottom. At the place over which the bridge of the instrument stands the upper edge of the bar d is thinned or sharpened, to serve as a fulcrum for a short lever, e, placed across it. By means of a screw, 9, passing through a sleeve, 12, under one of its ends, the bar 6 can be raised or lowered, to either elevate its opposite end, on which the sounding post 8 stands, pressing against the under side of the top of the instrument, or its pressure reduced by a reversed motion of the screw; or the lever or bar 6 may be passed through a slot made in the bar d, under the bridge, and fulerumed, as stated. The screw 9, passing through the bottom of the instrument, is at the outside provided with a flat head,and has a nut on its threaded end by which to raise or lower the end of the bar 6, that can be reached through the sounding-hole in the top of the instrument. From the bar (Z ribs h extend to the inner sides of the walls of the instrument, between top and bottom, and press against them with their slightly-enlarged ends.

The vibration of the strings produced by the use of the bow is by them first communicated to the bridge upon which they rest,and,standing on top ofthe instrument, it causes the body to vibrate, thereby adding strength to its tone; hence if good material-i, 6., material that vibrates readilyis required to produce agreeable sounds, bad or indifferent material can only produce feeble or disagreeable sounds, for want of its'vibrating quality. To obtain the necessary vibrations or a good tone from instruments made of secondary or inferior material has been the object of my invention, not excluding improvements in good instruments, and I have accomplished this by aug menting and communicating the vibrations through instantaneous reaction upon all parts of the body to expel the sounds from the interior through the sounding-holes, and by applying means for controlling them by reducing orincreasing the tension of the top of the instrument and its connections.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In combination with the bar d, the lover or bar 0, screw 9 in sleeve n, and ribs h, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the body A of a musical instrument with the bar (I, which extends from one end ofthe body to the other, the ribs or braces 71-, which are applied to opposite sides of this bar, a lever which is connectedto the bar, and a screw for adjusting the pressure of the lever upon the bar, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

J OHANN D. LOPPENTIEN.

\Vi tnesses:

LoUIs MonsnR, T. F. LEHMANN. 

